


Love on Canvas

by RK9



Category: CSI: Miami
Genre: Bittersweet Ending, F/M, Romance, Songfic, slightly OOC
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-03-10
Updated: 2005-03-10
Packaged: 2019-01-16 20:09:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12349800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RK9/pseuds/RK9
Summary: Really, everyone at the Miami Dade Crime Lab knows that Horatio and Calleigh belong together…With the help of a talented new team member, Delko and Speedle begin plotting Operation Ducaine…(Cross posted on FF.net)





	1. A Talented Artist

**Author's Note:**

> (Originally published on FF.net: 10 March 2005)
> 
> Unbetaed. This was written when I was 16... so yes, expect awkward and sappy. ^.^'' 
> 
> I decided to transfer my old fics over to AO3 because FF.net is now blocked in my country, and for some of my older fics I no longer have backups. I am using Google DNS, but in the event something happens, I wanted to have a copy of it elsewhere.
> 
> Originally on FF.net, this fic was written as a songfic. However as it is against AO3's ToS to post the full lyrics of songs in fics, I will be linking to the lyrics instead.

 

****

****  


The break room was silent except for the scratching noise of a pencil flying over paper. Calleigh Duquesne sighed as she glanced up from her ballistics magazine and glanced over at the source of the noise.

“Bayden,” she pleaded, “Can’t you stop drawing for half-an-hour or something? I can’t concentrate, and I’d really like to relax my mind right about now.”

Bayden Michaels was the newest recruit at the Miami Dade Crime Lab. Although he was in training to be a CSI, he seemed much better suited to become a police sketch artist. For now, though, he seemed content sketching the crime scenes in great detail and giving a face to a suspect from a witness description. Bayden loved sketching, so much so that it didn’t even matter to him what he had to draw, from the dirtiest crime scenes to the beautiful Miami skyline to the many faces of his coworkers while they were on the job.

Now, the blond-haired, green-eyed 22-year-old took one look at Calleigh’s face and obediently put down his pencil. Bayden was pretty much a non-aggressive person, and he didn’t like conflicts.

“Sorry, Cal,” he said, starting to put away his unfinished sketch of Alexx leaning over a corpse.

“Wait,” said Calleigh, grabbing his arm to peer at the sketch. She smiled. “This is one of your better ones, Bay.”

Bayden looked at her, and smiled, flushing a little. He still wasn’t used to people praising his drawings, but like anyone else would, he liked it.

A familiar set of footsteps drew their attention to the door, just in time to see Horatio Caine poking his head into the break room.

“Hey,” he greeted. “Calleigh, can I get your help with something?”

Realizing she wasn’t going to be able to relax at this time, Calleigh nodded and got up. “Guess you can get back to drawing, Bay,” she said, smiling regretfully. “Sorry I made you stop.”

Bayden gave her a sympathetic grin as he watched her leave with Horatio. Then, once he was sure she really was gone, he reached for his sketch book, humming to himself as he searched for his favorite picture of all his works.

Picking up his pencil again, Bayden set to work shading and drawing, hoping to complete the unfinished sketch before Calleigh or his supervisor returned. This sketch wasn’t one he planned to show to either of them, at least not before it was finished.

It showed Horatio and Calleigh talking just outside the MDPD after shift one day. Bayden remembered that day well, he’d stepped out for some fresh air after a long shift and seen them making plans for Bryan Woods’ birthday party. Alexx had something simple planned for her son, but Horatio and Calleigh had wanted to do a little extra for their friend’s son. The young CSI hadn’t eavesdropped, but he _had_ been struck by the…chemistry in the air between the two. Inspiration had hit him like a bolt of lightning, and he’d headed home right away to buy himself a special sketch book that he kept especially for sketching Horatio and Calleigh. The artist made careful note of how they acted around each other, remembering every single detail each time they met or worked together.

And then, he’d sketch the moment, storing it in his sketch book, doing what most artists found so hard to do – he captured their love on canvas, drawing them so you could see so clearly what both lieutenant and CSI were so blind to…the love they so clearly had for each other.

Finishing his sketch with one last pencil stroke, Bayden signed his name in miniscule writing in the bottom right corner, and smiled.

“Bayden?”

Closing his sketch book with a snap, Bayden looked up to see Speed and Delko looking at him.

“We’ve been calling your name for five minutes, Hawkeye,” said Speed, amused, using the nickname the team had given Bayden because of the way he never missed even the tiniest detail when sketching a crime scene.

“Sorry,” apologized Bayden, setting down his book. “What did you want?”

“It’s not so much what I want, as what H wants – he wants you to give him and Calleigh a hand on the Dennison case,” said Speed throwing himself onto the break room couch.

“Oh, okay.” The young man got up, moving to wash his hands, which had carbon marks from the pencils he used. Drying them on his pants, Bayden nodded to the two senior CSIs and headed out.

Once he was gone, Eric handed a cup of coffee to Speed, who took it, glancing at the sketch book Bayden had left behind. Curious, he picked one up, browsing through the sketches. Then, he stopped.

“Delko, look,” he said, showing Eric the one Bayden had just completed.

The underwater recovery expert looked at it, and whistled. “That’s nice.”

Speed gave him a look, whacking him on the shoulder. “What I meant, was, do you think Horatio and Calleigh know Bayden’s been spying on them?”

Rubbing his arm, Delko asked, “What makes you think he’s spying on them?”

Speed shook the sketch book under Delko’s nose impatiently. “Well, how else could he have drawn this picture? You telling me he dreamed this particular scene up?”

Eric shrugged. “Maybe he just saw them that one time?”

“Nope.” Speed turned the pages, showing other sketches of the lieutenant and their Bullet Girl.

“Hm,” Eric didn’t seem as worried about the situation as Speed was. “I think you should put the book down before Bayden gets back.”

Speed sighed, reluctantly placing the book back.

“You know something?” he asked thoughtfully after a while.

“What?” Delko looked quizzically at him.

“Bayden’s pictures are actually pretty good. I wonder…if we worked out a plan with him, maybe…”

“Maybe what?” Eric asked, half-wary, half-excited.

“Maybe we can get H and Calleigh to wake up and smell the evidence…show them, you know, how they feel about each other?” Tim had picked up the sketch book and was flipping through it again.

“Isn’t that, interfering in people’s private lives?” asked Eric.

“It’s not interfering,” said Speed indignantly. “We’re just gonna show them how they belong with each other, wake them up a little…”

It still sounded a lot like they were interfering to Delko, but then again, something that brought two soul mates together couldn’t be so bad, now could it?

Now all they needed was permission from Bayden to use his pictures.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the winner of the 2006 CSI Fanfic Awards in the category of "Romance – Miami – Het: Horatio/Calleigh".
> 
> Also, meet [Bayden](https://puppehpress.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/alex_pettyfer_actor_briton_guy_young_blond_18680_1080x1920.jpg?w=172&h=306) (portrayed in my head by Alex Pettyfer).


	2. A Work of Art

Eric nudged Tim as Bayden returned after finishing whatever job H had gotten him to do. “Well, aren’t you gonna ask him for his permission?”

Speed shook his head in the negative. It had only just occurred to the CSI that by trying to hook up his boss with his friend, they could get into trouble.

Serious trouble…. Trouble that Bayden didn’t need or deserve.

He turned to look at the young artist, who was frowning at his sketch books.

“Speed – did anyone come in and touch my stuff?” he asked, picking up the book that Speed had hastily put back, showing where one of the pages had been ripped. “Look – who would’ve done something like that, eh?”

“Can’t imagine,” said Speed solemnly, giving Delko a warning look to say nothing.

Being a wise man, Delko kept his mouth shut.

“I did see Calleigh come in just now, though,” Speed went on, saying the first name that came into his mind.

“Calleigh?” repeated Bayden, frowning uneasily, though Speed didn’t notice the nervous fidgeting. “Oh. Okay, I’ll ask her if she touched anything, but, you know, it’s really not that big a deal I guess.”

Nodding, Speed ventured, “Want me to lend you some cellophane tape, you know, to patch that up?”

The green-eyes widened, Bayden was clearly horrified at the very idea of taping up his precious sketches.

“NO – I mean, no, thanks, it’ll be fine.” Hastily Bayden glanced at the clock, which read 5.30 p.m., and gathered up his work, saying, “I’m heading out now, you guys, so…see you tomorrow.”

Once Bayden was gone, Speed turned to Eric. “Delko,” he said seriously, “Tomorrow, if you get the chance, you grab Bayden’s sketchbook and photocopy one of the sketches, then give it to me.”

“Why can’t we just ask Bayden to lend his sketchbook to us?” protested Delko.

“Because then if anyone asks, he can truthfully say that yes, he has drawn a sketch like that, but he has no idea how it got where I’m going to put it.” Speed grinned. “What’s the matter, Eric, don’t you trust me?”

Delko looked warily at him. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust his coworker, it was just that whenever Speed got that look on his face, they were bound to get into trouble.

Serious trouble… Trouble neither of them needed or deserved.

But even that wariness didn’t stop Delko from copying one of Bayden’s sketches the next morning the second he got the chance, and then discreetly passing said sketch to Speed when he saw the senior CSI in the locker room.

Speed studied the drawing, and nodded, saying, “Good work, Delko, it’ll do just fine.”

The Cuban studied the picture of Horatio and Calleigh processing evidence side-by-side in the Ballistics lab, and commented, “If you ask me, the photocopying ruined the quality. What are you gonna do with it, anyway?”

“Hey, if they think it’s low-quality, all the better,” said Speed firmly. “Then maybe they won’t go after Bayden.” Carefully keeping the picture in a file in his locker, to bring home later, he added, “As for what I’m going to do – I’m bringing this puppy home later to Photoshop it a little. I got a friend who can help.”

“Delko.”

Both men jumped at Horatio’s voice.

“Yes, H?” asked Eric, nervously. Man, why hadn’t he become a Methodist or something? Being a Catholic, he was always feeling guilty.

“I need you right now. Speed, you have a home invasion downtown.” Their supervisor frowned at Eric’s fidgeting. “Is there a problem, Eric?”

“Um, no, I’ll be right with you, H,” he answered quickly. Too quickly, but Horatio simply squinted at him and accepted the answer.

“Later,” Speed called to Delko, who grabbed his kit and followed their boss out of the locker room.

* * *

“Well?”

Speed’s question slid right off the young computer geek sitting in front of the 18″ computer screen, who was busy scanning the photostatted picture from every possible angle. Finally, the geek nodded, looking very pleased.

“This is gorgeous!” said Whiris Mann, slapping Speed on the back enthusiastically. “I’d be more than honoured to Photoshop this for you – anything, so long as I can put my mark on this work of art!”

Relieved, Speed grinned at the blonde woman. “Thanks, Whirr.”

“What did you want me to do again?” asked Whiris, running a loving finger over the page before she slid it into the scanner.

The Trace expert removed a sheet of paper he had hastily printed out that evening after shift. “Just add these song lyrics to it,” he said. “You can do that, right?”

Whiris gave him a scornful look. “Of course I can do it. You wouldn’t be here otherwise.”

“Sorry,” he apologized. “Anyway, thanks again, and I’ll drop by tomorrow morning to pick it up?”

She gave him a distracted nod, already concentrating on her work. “Whatever.”

When she remained silent and continued to ignore him, Speed took the not-too-subtle hint and saw himself out.

* * *

It was funny, how sometimes every bone in your body tingled, and you got this really bad feeling down your spine, like something in the very air around you was trying to tell you that something was up, Horatio Caine thought to himself as he stepped into his office that morning, closing the door behind him.

Settling down behind his desk, something caught his attention, and the lieutenant frowned as he reached out for the large brown envelope in the middle of the table. The words, “Lt. Horatio Caine, Miami Dade Crime Lab”, were neatly printed on said envelope, and Horatio wondered who would have sent – wait, it couldn’t have been sent. There envelope didn’t have a stamp on it, or a postal mark, nor did it have the words ‘postage paid’ on it…so, someone had apparently dropped it off here. At his office. By hand.

A chill started up Horatio’s spine as he recalled the uneasy feeling he’d had coming in to work that day…

Opening it, he pulled out a large, smooth sheet of paper – only to stare in complete and utter disbelief at what he saw.

It was a glossy and perfectly captured picture of him and Calleigh working together side-by-side in the lab, with [words](https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/6981144) printed down one side of the paper.

And printed in Comic Sans MS font at the bottom were the words, “Admitting your feelings is the first step, H.”

It took a full ten minutes for Horatio to get a grip on his temper. Counting slowly backwards from fifty, he strode out of his office, heading straight for the break room, where he found the object of his search making light pencil strokes on a sketch of a beach crime scene.

“Bayden,” he said, the tone of his voice making the young artist look up instantly.

“Yeah, H?” he asked carefully. “What’s up?”

Horatio dearly wanted to stuff the sketch down the young man’s throat by now, but he controlled himself and said, “My private life is intended to be private, Bayden. If this was meant to be a joke, it isn’t funny.”

Bayden looked confused. “What joke? I didn’t do anything-“

“Bayden!” Calleigh chose that moment to come barreling in to to the room, brandishing a picture identical to the one Horatio had received. “Did you send me this?” she demanded. “This isn’t funny, Bayden!”

“I didn’t send anything to anybody!” exclaimed the young man. “I don’t even know what you’re talking about!”

Calleigh thrust her paper under Bayden’s nose. “How could you not have done this?” she asked, furious. “Your signature’s at the bottom of the sketch, the way you always sign your work!”

Bayden was busy reading the lyrics, but at Calleigh’s accusation he looked up and protested, “No, this is one of my sketches, but I didn’t do…this – I like my sketches  _au naturel_  and this one looks like it was photocopied…”

Seeing them calm down and look thoughtful, he practically pleaded, “Honest, guys, I didn’t send them to you. I’d admit it if I had – you know I would!”

“All right, Bayden, we believe you,” said Horatio, and Calleigh nodded, though she was still angry.

“Who would have sent these?” she wondered aloud, irritated. “Who would have so much free time to want to photocopy Bayden’s work and…I don’t know, insert song lyrics?”

Outside the break room, Tim Speedle wore an evil grin as he thought,  _‘I didn’t have free time, Calleigh…what I had was a friend who owed me a favor…’_  With that in mind, he made a mental note to send some flowers to Whiris as a thank you gift.

“What’s going on?” asked Eric, appearing at his side.

Speed turned to him with a grin. “Phase One of my plan was just set into motion, that’s what.”

“Oh?” Delko looked interested. “What happened?”

“They went for Bayden, but got off his back when they saw he really hadn’t done it…now I’ll start working on Phase Two while they’re wondering who could have done it,” said Speed.

“Do I have to do anything for Phase Two?” asked the younger man.

“Not yet,” was the answer. “Go on in, I’ll call if I need you.”

Eric nodded, heading in, just in time to brush shoulders with the two “victims” as they left the room.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Horatio rip up the copy he had of the sketch and toss it into the nearest bin, while Calleigh started to do the same…

…but once the red-headed lieutenant had walked off, she hesitated, and Eric resisted giving a victory yell as she took another look at the sketch, then carefully folded it up to keep in her pocket instead.

Tim joined him just in time to see what he saw, and he grinned. Both men gave each other a high-five.

“See?” asked Speed in delight. “We got Calleigh already, how hard can it be to rope H as well?”

And while Delko had his doubts about them roping H in just yet, he had to admit that if Calleigh had given in so easily, surely…surely Horatio would do the same?

Only time would tell, and it was now time to put Phase Two into action.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gotta love how far technology has brought us. When this fic was originally written, I didn’t have the means or talent to bring Bayden’s masterpieces to life. Today, anyone with a smartphone can do it. I’m sort of touched and amazed, and I feel it adds more to the fic to be able to put an image of what I saw in my mind 11+ years ago alongside the text.


	3. Processing Evidence

Eric Delko was happy. You could hear it in the way he was whistling as he strolled into the MDPD crime lab to start his shift. In fact, the hot date he’d had last night might even have had something to do with his good mood that morning.

And then, Tim Speedle proceeded to spoil said good mood. Unwillingly, but still…most people do get shocked when they walk into a locker room to see their coworker banging their head against the lockers.

“Speed!” yelped Delko. “What’re you doing? You’ll hurt yourself!”

Speed reluctantly stopped, turning to face Delko. “They just won’t learn, Delko,” he groaned. “They just won’t learn…”

“What?” Now not only was Eric shocked, he was confused.

“H and Calleigh!” Speed said, throwing up his hands. “Or right now, just Calleigh.”

“What happened?” asked Eric. “Did she ask H out? What?”

Speed moaned. “Did she ask H out, he asks…” He turned, and Eric was only just able to stop him from banging his head on the lockers again.

“Worse,” Speed said dejectedly. “She let Hagen ask her out.”

There was a stunned silence as Eric stared at Speed. “She didn’t.”

“She did.”

This time around, when Speed started banging again, Eric joined in.

* * *

Sketch and draw. Draw and sketch. Calleigh watched Bayden out of the corner of her eye as his pencil flew over the paper. His green eyes seemed slightly glazed over, as though he had gone into a trance of some sort.

Debating whether or not she should snap her fingers and see if he’d respond, Calleigh was interrupted by Speedle’s and Delko’s entrance. Both men were whispering to each other, and Tim threw a glance towards Bayden.

She stared. When had those two gotten so pally? Usually Tim would be using his seniority to bully the younger CSI, and Delko would be annoying Speed.

Curious.

Bayden suddenly seemed to wake up, blinking as he stared at his sketch. He had done a pretty good one of Calleigh and Detective John Hagen, but he frowned as he looked at it. Calleigh wondered why, but chalked it up to the fact that most artists were never satisfied with their work, no matter how perfect it already was.

“That’s lovely, Bay,” she said, hoping to make up for jumping to conclusions when someone had placed the sketch of herself and Horatio in an envelope taped to her locker.

It worked, Bayden beamed at her, pleased. “You think so? I was thinking I didn’t like this one.”

“No, Bay, it’s really good,” Tim put in from across the room.

Bayden seemed to almost literally puff up with happiness that they liked his work. “Thanks, guys,” he said shyly. “It’s not really that great.”

“You’re an artist, Bayden,” came Horatio’s voice from the door. “And your work is good. Your only problem is that you lack self-confidence. Take some pride in your work, will you?”

Bayden flushed, looking very cute as he did so. Stifling a giggle, Calleigh went over to Horatio and said, “Good morning, lieutenant. Did you just stumble in?”

“My alarm clock fell off my bedside table,” Horatio explained. “It broke when it hit the floor. So I woke up late.”

“I don’t even have an alarm clock,” said Bayden, in his quiet voice.

“Yeah? Then how do you always arrive on time?” an amazed Speed demanded.

“Why so curious, Tim?” teased Calleigh. “We each gave you an alarm clock for your last birthday party, and you still arrive late every day.”

Everyone laughed, except Speed, and Bayden explained, “I use the alarm clock in my cellphone.”

“Right, before this deteriorates any further,” said Horatio firmly, “Let me give out the assignments.”

Everyone shut up obediently, though Speed and Delko exchanged a grin between themselves as Speed carefully took up Bayden’s latest masterpiece and hid it under his shirt as he walked out.

* * *

The white envelope looked innocently at Calleigh from her locker door the next morning, but she eyed it warily, half-hoping that it wasn’t what she thought it was. Maybe her mother had sent her a letter.

Right. And maybe her mother had sent said letter through one of Calleigh’s friends at the lab, maybe the man at the post office in Louisiana had forgotten to stamp her mother’s letter with the postmark, and maybe she was crazy.

Gathering all her courage, she opened the letter.

The sketch she had just seen Bayden drawing yesterday leapt out at Calleigh, and her heart beat wildly in her chest cavity as she stared at the [lyrics](https://www.stlyrics.com/songs/n/north25900/betteroffwithoutyou1077823.html) of the song that were neatly printed along the bottom, Photoshopped into a nice design.

What was going on? Calleigh groaned and leaned against the locker door, eyes scanning the words. Bayden had sworn over his dead brother the last time that he hadn’t done it, and she believed him. He was simply too timid to even think about something like this.

“Why can’t you stay out of my private life?” she hissed at the picture, as though by doing so it would come to life and make the actual culprit decide to stop.

“Calleigh? Is something wrong?”

The MDCL firearms expert turned to see her handsome red-headed boss standing in the doorway.  _‘Freaky’_ , a voice in her mind said.  _‘It’s almost as though he could sense something was wrong with you, huh, Calleigh?’_

Firmly ignoring the traitorous little voice, Calleigh answered, “Yes, I’ve gotten another…um, letter.”

Horatio strode over to her instantly, taking the sketch from her hand, and studying it, reading the little notation at the bottom out loud:

“Ditch him, Cal, you deserve better.”

Looking at her rather flushed face, he said carefully, “You know, I got one this morning too – of me and Yelina.”

Calleigh shook her head, feeling like someone had blindsided her with a truck. “Your sister-in-law.”

“Yes, same song, same words – only adjusted to fit my situation.”

“But, Horatio,” said Calleigh, “Who’s sending them?”

Her boss studied the paper in his hands as he replied, “Well, obviously it’s someone we know well. I’d say it was someone at work.”

She nodded. “And whoever it is has a knowledge of computers, or at least is good at designing.”

“And he or she also has access to Bayden’s sketchbooks,” said Horatio thoughtfully. “And they don’t want Bayden to get in trouble, after we went after him the last time…”

“Hang on,” said Calleigh. “You lost me there…how do you know they don’t want Bayden to get in trouble?”

Horatio pointed out the bottom right corner, where Bayden usually signed his name. “Last time, we jumped to conclusions because we saw Bayden’s signature on the sketch. This time, the signature has been removed, I’d say with a computer. So whoever this is, they’re in the lab.”

He looked up grimly. “Ready to fish out the busybody?”

She swallowed. Then, she nodded, determined. “Yeah. Let’s find out who’s messing with our private lives.”

“And while we’re at it,” Horatio pointed out, “We might just ask Bayden to keep a closer eye on his sketchbooks.”

Calleigh grinned. “Yeah.”

There was a comfortable silence, before Horatio asked tentatively, “So, how was your date with Hagen last night?”

“Date?” Calleigh frowned. “There was no date. Something came up, and he cancelled at the last minute.”

“No kidding,” said Horatio, an odd note in his voice. It sounded a little like…jealousy, but no, that was stupid. Horatio didn’t feel things like jealousy, Calleigh told herself firmly.

“Uh-huh.” She held out her hand. “Shall we go find Bayden?”

“After you, milady,” he shot back, gallantly bowing and letting her lead the way.

* * *

 


	4. Maximum Exposure

Delko slipped into the locker room, looking around quickly. Once he was sure that no one but him and Speed were there, he said, “Speed!”

The hissing of his name made Speed jump. “Delko, for crying out loud – what’s your problem?” he asked, crossly.

“I walked into the break room this morning….” Delko began, only for Speed to cut him off, saying,

“Is this one of those never-ending stories? Or worse, is this a story that ends with, ‘So, after having hot monkey sex with her, I walked out and never saw her again…’?”

Delko frowned. “No – listen to me, Speed!”

“I’m listening.” Speed yawned; his damned alarm clock hadn’t woken him up on time again that morning.

“I walked into the break room this morning, and I saw H and Calleigh talking to Bayden.” Delko wrung his hands nervously. “I think they’re starting to figure it out, Speed, they knew that whoever was doing this was working in the lab, and had access to Bayden’s sketchbooks, and knew how to use a computer…”

“Yeah?” Speed looked interested.

“They were telling Bayden to keep a closer eye on his sketchbooks. If I know Bayden, now he’ll watch those books like…a hawk.” Eric sank down onto a bench. “Does that mean we have to stop, Speed?”

His companion took a moment to think it over, before saying, “Well, we knew that H and Cal were smart. They would have figured it out sooner or later. Of course, I’m still one step ahead of them.”

“You are?” asked Delko doubtfully.

“Are you doubting me?” asked Speed sternly.

Eric shook his head.

“Good.” Speed went on, “See, knowing as I did that H and Calleigh would catch on sooner or later, I discarded Phase Two for the moment and came up with a plan. Now, you say Bayden won’t let his sketches out of his sight? Not a problem. We don’t need his sketches anymore.”

“We don’t?” Delko was about to protest, but Speed said,

“No, we don’t. For one thing, I did some thinking earlier, and I realized that I’ve been pretty stupid – I mean, we’ve been smart in borrowing and photocopying Bayden’s sketches, yes. But think about it – it’s risky, right? So… yesterday when I took Bayden’s sketch book, I photocopied every single sketch inside it – and then I returned it.”

Speechless, Delko stared at Speedle in mixed relief and worry.

“But then…”

“What?”

Now Eric found his voice. “You’re a genius, Speed,” he said honestly, and Speed grinned.

“Check this out,” he ordered, producing a tape recorder. Pressing the ‘Play’ button, he leaned back to let Delko listen to [the song](https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/sclub7/spirituallove.html).

The song ended just as Bayden sauntered into the break room, and Speed hastily clicked it off, before the artist could hear it.

“Whatcha got there?” he asked quickly, eyes falling on the sketchbook in Bayden’s hand.

“I’m putting it in my locker for now,” replied Bayden. “H wants me to do an eyewitness sketch of a suspect.”

Speed’s eyebrows went up. “What, you don’t trust us? I’d heard that H told you to keep a closer eye on your sketchbook, Hawkeye, but I can’t believe we’re suspects!”

“You’re not,” replied Bayden, uncomfortably, slipping the sketchbook in quickly and closing the locker. “But H told me not to let _anyone_ near my sketches, and he said to include even him and Calleigh in that list, so…”

“Hey, I got it.” Speed said, heartily smacking Bayden on the back. “You go do your sketching. Good luck.”

“Thanks,” replied the young man, pleasantly surprised. “You’re a really nice guy, Speed.”

“Uh-huh.” Speed watched as Bayden left the locker room, before turning to Delko. “I got his combination – 7-22-15-3. Try it.”

Quickly, both partners-in-crime moved over to Bayden’s locker. Delko spun the lock to each of the numbers Speed had mentioned, but it seemed as though Speed’s eyes weren’t as sharp as he’d thought they were.

“Darn,” said Delko, disappointed.

“Wait.” Speed disappeared, returning with a stethoscope, which he placed on the lock, twisting it carefully this way and that.

_7\. Click._

_22\. Click._

_15\. Click._

_3…_

Speed frowned, twisting it to the left and right…

_5… Click._

“Hah!” Delko caught the lock as it fell, while Speed got rid of the stethoscope and opened the locker door.

Inside, were pictures of Bayden’s life. Taped to the door was a picture of Bayden’s eight-year-old sister, the daughter of his mother and stepfather. Her name was Amy, Bayden mentioned her now and again.

Underneath that picture was a photograph of Bayden and his two dogs, a pair of Jack Russells named Tuff and Trouble, and a printed quote saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words – so don’t talk, draw!”

And inside, amidst the dirty sweaters and clean socks, were the prize they sought – Bayden’s sketch books.

Tim seized them, handed them to Delko and ordered, “Photocopy everything! I’ll stay here and keep an eye out for Bayden.”

Eric was glad he was an ex-jock, and he ran out quickly, disappearing in the throng of people who were in the lab. It took a whole half-hour to actually copy every single sketch, but he finally did it and rushed back. Speed hurriedly shoved the books back in and slammed the locker shut, before helping Delko hide the copies in a folder he had.

Just as Bayden walked in.

“Speed!” he called, cheerfully. “We got the guy, and guess what? Since you were so nice to me earlier, I drew this for you.”

He handed Speed a piece of sketch paper, grabbed his sweater out of his locker, and hummed a tune as he left. Surprised, Speed studied the sketch – and gulped.

“What?” asked Delko, curiously peering over his shoulder.

The note pinned to the top of the sketch read,

“ _So, you like stealing and photocopying sketches, do you? Well, if you don’t have a good explanation when you meet me for dinner at Pizza Hut later, I might just take my copy of this sketch and go to Horatio with what I know. Think about it._

_Hawkeye.”_

Speed lifted the note, and they both stared in stunned silence at the cleverly drawn picture of them. There was a lightning-shaped line separating two pictures – one of Speed and Delko in the locker room studying the sketch books they had just stolen from Bayden, and another of Delko waiting nervously as the lab photocopier churned out copies of his sketches.

Finally, Eric looked at Speed. “What should we do?”

Speed bit his lip, then said, “I guess we go work up an appetite for pizza tonight.”

“But-“

“But nothing,” growled Speed. “He’s got us, but it doesn’t mean I’m giving up.”

With that, he spun on his heel and left Delko watching him storm out.

* * *

 


	5. Moving Right Along

Pizza Hut, as its name suggested, smelt of pizza. It was crowded with pizza-loving patrons, half of whom, to Speed’s eternal disgust, were chowing down on pizza with extra anchovies.

“Come on,” he muttered, yanking Delko past a group of giggling teenage girls who seemed to be trying to pour ketchup down each other’s backs.

Delko yanked his arm free of Speed’s grasp. “Where’s Bayden?” he wanted to know.

The senior CSI stood on his toes, scanning the restaurant. Finally, he dropped back down, and pointed. “There.”

Eric followed his finger, his jaw dropping in shock as he spotted the blond.

“Doesn’t he ever stop drawing?” he asked, moving to keep up with Speed as he headed over.

“Apparently not,” came the reply, and both men skidded to a halt in front of Bayden’s table.

Bayden glanced up at them, and motioned to the plush leather seats.

“This is my sister, Amy,” he said, introducing the little girl who was sitting opposite the table from him, playing with a dark curl and holding the sketch Bayden had just made of her between her fingers.

Amy looked up at both men with interest. “You must be Speed,” she said to the CSI, who nodded.

“And you’re Delko,” she said to the young Cuban. “You’re the guys who’ve been stealing my brother’s sketches.”

Both men swallowed hard at that, though they tried to look cool.

“We didn’t steal them,” said Delko uncomfortably. “We took them.”

“Without permission,” Amy pointed out. “Which, in any dictionary, equals stealing.”

Bayden grinned and motioned the men to a seat. “Can you tell she wants to be a lawyer when she’s all grown up? My parents are so proud of her…”

Amy swatted his arm, and grinned.

“Just looking out for my big brother,” she assured him, her green eyes twinkling.

The blond ruffled her hair and turned to his coworkers, all business now.

“You guys are in serious trouble, you do realize that?” he asked, green eyes solemn. “You might not get arrested, but if I so much as hint to H that you’re behind all this…”

All three men shuddered simultaneously. They all knew that H had a temper to match his red hair, but he just controlled himself too well for it to show. From her seat, Amy watched with interest, taking a bite of pizza.

Speed was the first to speak.

“What do you want, Bay?” he asked, his voice tired. “Money? We gave you back your sketches. What more do you want?”

The artist looked disgustedly at Speed. “Money?” he repeated. “Why would I want money?”

 _‘Shows how well he knows my brother,’_ thought Amy, nibbling at a pineapple slice.

She might be young, but she knew Bayden. He had practically raised her, or at least been a first-rate babysitter as she was growing up. Their parents – her parents – were barely home, thanks to their jobs and need of cash to support their little family.

Bayden’s life hadn’t been an easy one. Her mother had told her a little of how devastated Bayden had been when his father had left home at age six, shortly after the death of Bayden’s twin brother. The young boy had worshipped the ground his father walked on, and Amy guessed that her brother had been happy to have inherited his artist father’s talent.

His life had been further disrupted when their mother had remarried a novelist – talk about falling for artsy-type people – and had given him a younger sister at the difficult age of 14. As a teenager struggling to find himself and his place in the world they inhabited, Bayden had barely tolerated Amy at first, jealous of how his mother and the stepfather he had grown to like paid more attention to their bundle of joy than to him.

She supposed she had grown on him. Amy smirked to herself; she did have that effect on people.

Bayden had been a good son to their mother; he’d gotten good grades in school, went to Miami’s most prestigious university, graduated with honors…and now he even sent money home for her, even though both his parents had a job. Amy didn’t know what her mother did with the money, but she wondered sometimes if her mother’s first husband had maybe been a saint – how else could Bayden act so…good, after what he had been through?

But as far as Amy knew him – and she knew him pretty well – Bayden’s whole life was his art. As long as he could sketch, he would be happy. Money, family, friends – it could all disappear for all he cared.

Okay. So maybe it was a bit of exaggeration. But close enough.

“I don’t want money, Speed,” said Bayden. He leaned in, green eyes serious.

“I want to help.”

Speed spewed the mouthful of Pepsi he had just swallowed over his pizza slice, and Delko choked on his mouthful of pasta. Bayden patiently waited for both of them to recover, while Amy thoughtfully handed each man a handful of tissues.

” Say what?” Speed croaked at last.

“Would you like me to repeat that in Spanish?” asked the young man, a teasing note in his voice. “Or would you be more comfortable with Latin?”

“Bayden can also speak Chinese,” Amy put in helpfully.

“No – I mean,” Speed spluttered, still not quite over the shock just yet.

“Why would you want to help us?” Delko asked, finally, voicing what his companion had been trying to splutter.

The blond grinned. “Why would I want to help you? Let me count the ways.”

“One -” Amy grinned.

“I think Horatio and Calleigh belong together as much as you do,”

“Two -“

“I’m better at designing things on Photo Shop 7 than whoever you’ve been bribing so far,”

“Three -“

“I know a lot more songs that would be appropriate than the two of you put together,”

“And four –”

“I’m more creative,” finished Bayden.

Speed muttered, “If I didn’t know you were such a modest person, Bay, I’d hate you for that.”

“The thing is, Speed, he hasn’t said anything that isn’t true yet…” Delko glanced at Speed, who had been in charge of the whole thing all along. What would he decide?

Speed chewed thoughtfully on a Pepsi-sprayed pizza crust, before he glanced at Bayden, who was patiently waiting for a reply.

“Well,” he said thoughtfully, “I suppose it couldn’t hurt…”

“It would probably help,” said Amy pointedly, before Bayden shushed her.

But Speed grinned. “Yeah, Amy, you’re probably right. It would help. Which is why -” he raised his Pepsi glass in a toast, “I’m welcoming Bayden to our little team.”

Delko broke into a grin and Amy whooped, throwing herself at Speed and hugging him.

“You’re the greatest!” she told him enthusiastically. Her brother looked on, amused, as she kissed Speed on the cheek.

“She also doubles as my agent,” he told Delko, and both men laughed.

“Okay, okay, back to business…” Speed gulped down some Pepsi and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. “What are we going to do next?”

“Well…” Bayden leaned forward. “I might have a plan…”

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my mind, [Amy](https://puppehpress.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/kristina-pimenova.jpg?w=198&h=297) is portrayed by Kristina Pimenova.


	6. Let Me Hear Your Voice

“Your task is simple – to carry these mini tape recorders with you all day, and whenever you’re in the vicinity of Calleigh or Horatio, just turn them on and record. Your mission – to get me good samples of their voices.”

Bayden’s lousy imitation of a handler giving an agent his or her special mission fell short of Michael Vartan’s talent on _Alias_ , but it was good enough for Delko, who took the small device and carefully slipped it into his pocket. Speed was slower to follow suit; Delko got the feeling the senior CSI wasn’t happy at the way Bayden was now taking charge, but he too took the device and put it into his pocket.

The guys were all at Bayden’s home, a neat little bungalow in a nice neighborhood. The place was, to put it simply, a mess. The living room was cluttered with canvasses and art supplies, and pencils littered the coffee table – not to mention any other flat surface that could be used for the simple activity of drawing.

The rest of the house didn’t look much better, filled with junk and old newspapers that Bayden said he collected to help his little sister with her school’s recycling project.

The only place that actually seemed livable was the bedroom. From the brief peek Delko had gotten of it, anyway, it seemed to be the most spacious room in the house. And by most spacious, he meant less junk.

Bayden slept on a single mattress in a corner, and there was a closet filled with clothes – earthy tones, nothing fancy, just normal everyday clothing… and a few suits Delko figured Bayden used for when he had to go to court.

The other room that was actually useable was the guest room, and Delko had a feeling the only guest that actually used that room was Bayden’s little sister. There were posters of unicorns all over the walls, and the bedspread was a pink one with Pokemon all over it. The whole room was also neat, which definitely signaled a female presence.

But the thing that Bayden had invited them over to see wasn’t there. It was, instead, sitting inconspicuously in a corner, a neat little PC that Bayden claimed he had put together himself with parts bought with his own money. Whether they had been bought legally or not was presently still under speculation, but Delko didn’t really care. He was more curious as to what Bayden planned to do once he had the samples of H and Calleigh’s voices. And what did Bayden’s souped-up computer have to do with anything?

Bayden was happily starting up the computer, which leapt to life with a soft whirr. He had a sudden energy in his movements as he typed in commands, and suddenly Delko got the feeling that Bayden was as good with computers as he was with his artwork. He’d heard somewhere that most artists were geniuses, talented in more than one field. Bayden seemed to be proving that theory. Delko knew that Bayden had done well in school, if his results were anything to go by. He was a remarkable artist, a good crime scene investigator, good with children…it seemed he was a computer whiz too. What else could he do?

…Other than create illegal computer programs, that is.

“Dude – where’d you get this program? I wasn’t aware that it was on the market.” Speed’s eyes were wide.

“Um…it isn’t, technically,” answered Bayden uncomfortably. “I tweaked the original program a little….don’t think I’d better tell you where or how.” Straightening, he added, “Anyway, this baby will help us get H and Cal together, you just watch!”

Delko had to admit it was a good plan. The program was a special one that could be used to “adjust” what someone was saying. For example, if you wanted someone, say, H, to say “I love you”, they could enter voice samples of him talking normally into the program, then the words could be spliced together to create that exact sentence, complete with intonation. All you had to do was know how to use it…and of course, you needed voice samples of certain words.

Hence, the tape recorders.

“So…think you guys can get the words we need?” asked Bayden, powering down the computer again and spinning in his seat.

“Shouldn’t be a problem,” answered Speed. “Unless they both decide to take a vow of silence or something.”

Bayden nodded seriously, as though that might actually be a factor – even though, seeing as H wasn’t a monk and Calleigh wasn’t either, it definitely wasn’t possible.

Man, this guy needed a sense of humor…or a woman, whichever came first. _With his boyish good-looks, why hasn’t he found a girlfriend?_ Delko wondered.

_Gee, Delko, could it be that his sketchbooks are his girlfriends?_

Pushing away the truly scary thought, Delko nodded to Bayden and followed the other two men as they headed for the door.

Once outside, Speed headed for the Hummer and opened the driver’s door. Sliding behind the wheel, he waited until Delko had belted up before starting the car and stating, “Bayden seriously needs a girl.”

“What – is he our next project?” asked Delko, actually liking the idea. He and Speed made a good team. They could be like… ‘The Matchmakers of the 21st Century’. No, that was too long. ‘The Couplers’. No, it sounded…weird. ‘The Get-Togetherers’. No, that sounded like they planned lunches for people…

Oh well. The right name would come in time.

 _‘How about ‘The Busybodies’?_ a little voice whispered in his mind, but thankfully, Delko was able to ignore that as Speed started speaking again.

“Well…after H and Cal get married, we can try… I think Bayden would like a blonde. Eh?”

Delko grunted. Weren’t all women the same, regardless of hair color?

At the noncommittal grunt, Speed rolled his eyes, making a mental note to find Eric a girlfriend first.

* * *

Horatio Caine entered his office the next morning like a commando sneaking through a minefield. He wasn’t exactly crawling over the floor as looking around cautiously, though. After the happenings of the past few shifts, he didn’t want to see exactly how creative whoever was messing in his and Calleigh’s lives had gotten. In fact, he was pretty certain that if there was another envelope on his desk with another photocopied sketch, he was going to rip it up and burn it.

Thankfully, today the table was bare, and Horatio stepped back out of his office with the day’s assignments, feeling relieved…and yet…

Nah. He shook himself impatiently. Of course he didn’t think those sketches might actually be worth listening to. Silly idea. He must not have gotten enough sleep last night. Yeah, that was it. He was tired, therefore his brain conjured up silly ideas like that…

“H!”

Eric jogged up to him, a nervous grin on his face. Opening his mouth, he thought about whatever he had wanted to say, then shut it again.

Bracing himself, Horatio asked, “What’s up, Eric?”

Eric looked at his boss, cleared his throat, shuffled his feet, then mumbled, “SpeedandIhadafightsocanInotbepairedwithhimthismorningplease?”

It took Horatio a full minute to decipher that sentence, which he used to drag Eric towards the break room.

“You and Speed had a fight?” he repeated, frowning, truly surprised. “A fight.”

“Yeah.” Eric looked down at his feet. Apparently the dirt markings on the floor were more appealing than Horatio’s blue eyes at that moment – a sentiment Calleigh probably wouldn’t agree with.

Horatio mentally smacked himself on the forehead – where on earth had that last sentence come from?

 _What are you trying to do, Caine?_ He scolded himself.

“H?” Eric was looking strangely at him.

“Eric, I -“

“I promise I’ll make up with Speed soon, H, but I can’t do that until he cools down. I can’t work the Daniels’ case with him, H, honestly I can’t.”

Delko looked so desperate… Horatio sighed.

“Well, as long as you promise to make up with him _soon_ , all right?”

Honestly, sometimes dealing with his team was like dealing with five-year-old children. And Horatio was certain that five-year-olds could be more mature – though he didn’t say so out loud, since even five-year-olds knew how to hit back when hurt.

“Yes, sir,” answered Eric, sounding relieved.

“Good. We’ll be working the Lovegood case this morning – According to Yelina, Henry Lovegood was found dead in his swimming pool this morning, so we’re heading over there right away. Where’s Bayden?”

“Uh…in there.” Eric gestured towards the break room, where the artist was doing what he usually did – sketching. His brow was furrowed with concentration as he drew, and under his talented fingers, Eric could already see a lovely side profile of Horatio blooming, like a flower under the sun.

“Bayden.” The dayshift supervisor called patiently, anticipating the slight daze that the young man was usually in after he emerged from what Speed called his “sketching high”. Bayden looked up, green eyes bleary, then he focused on his boss and got up, dropping the sketch book.

“Let’s go, Hawkeye,” the red-haired lieutenant said. “Time to do our job.”

“It’s what we get paid the medium-sized bucks for, H,” grinned Eric, and Horatio wondered if he was so cheerful because Speed wasn’t there of because…of something else altogether.

But that could wait. For now they had a crime to solve, and a victim whose family members needed justice – and closure.

* * *

“But, Calleigh, it’s just a riddle,” said Speed, his voice echoing slightly as he drove the Hummer towards the crime scene he was working alone with the Bullet Girl due to his and Eric’s “fight”. Or, as Speed had described it to Calleigh, the “Big Blow-Up”.

Calleigh sounded mildly irritated as she replied, “Tim, you put bread in a toaster. Toast is what comes out of it.”

Darn. Foiled. Tim forced up a smile.

“So what happened with you and Eric anyway?” asked Calleigh. Now she sounded curious.

Speed had prepared for this moment with Delko, so that both their stories would be synchronized. Turning onto the quiet neighborhood where their crime scene was, he answered in a tight voice, “There’s this girl…”

Calleigh groaned. “Speed, no. Don’t tell me you and Delko are almost throwing away your friendship for a _girl_.”

“Fine, I won’t tell you,” said Speed. He closed his mouth, but it turned out Calleigh wasn’t done.

“Speed,” she leaned forward, “I mean it. You and Delko have a great thing going on. You’re like…buddies, real partners in so many ways. Don’t let one girl come between you two. Don’t let _anyone_ or _anything_ come between you two. You need to talk to Delko, okay?”

Speed grunted, but Calleigh seemed satisfied. And deep down inside, so was Tim. He was willing to bet Bayden would be able to get some really good stuff off of Calleigh’s little speech. All the little words they could get – _‘buddies’, ‘partners’_ … Speed fought the urge to cackle evilly, like a witch who had gotten a really good potion bubbling in her cauldron.

It took all of his restraint and self-control not to rush home immediately after shift, though he did glance at the clock several times and imagine himself telekinetically moving the little hands to the desired positions.

The problem was, Speed wasn’t telekinetic. And time kept moving at its own slow pace, no matter how hard he silently begged the clock to hurry up.

Of course, it did occur to Speed that the clock mechanism didn’t respond to mental pleas and silent commands.

But finally, 5 o’clock rolled around, and Speed was the first out the door. Delko followed, and Bayden left last, so as not to arouse suspicion. The three men met up at Bayden’s again, where the young artist got his computer up and running.

Speed chose to spend his time pacing, while Delko ordered out for Chinese, foreseeing that they might be there a while. Bayden was completely focused on his computer, typing in codes and commands. Often, little snatches of words, in Horatio’s and Calleigh’s voices, came drifting out of the speakers that stood by Bayden’s PC.

Finally, the artist pushed his chair back and grinned. Speed liked the way he was grinning.

“Well?” he demanded, trying and failing to keep the anxiety out of his voice.

Bayden grinned. Tapping a button, he turned up the volume on the speaker’s and leaned back with a smirk.

“… I mean it. We have a great thing going on, Horatio. We’re more than buddies, we’re partners, real partners in so many ways…”

Though Calleigh’s voice sounded slightly metallic, Tim was ecstatic, knowing there were filters Bayden could use later to get rid of that…

“Great! All that from one day? Awesome!” The CSI was psyched. “What about H?”

Bayden smiled. “God bless Henry Lovegood,” he said, grinning. “Without his name, I doubt we’ll ever get Horatio to say the ‘L’ word.”

“Remind me to send his widow flowers when H and Cal get married.” Speed looked impatiently at Bayden. “Well?”

Bayden’s grin faded a little. He turned to the computer and sighed. “We don’t have enough,” he said, helplessly. “H talks, but he rarely says anything we can use…we need a plan, guys. Something to get him saying the words we need…”

“Which are?” Speed straightened instantly.

“I dunno. Something about…commitment, maybe. Something about romance and love….”

Just then, the front door flew open and Amy Michaels came hurtling in, moving in her usual whirlwind fashion.

“Hey, guys,” she said, not missing a beat. “How’s Bayden’s plan coming along?”

Bayden, Delko and Speed all stared at her…and slowly, all three of their faces split into almost identical grins…

* * *

 


	7. Strength in Weakness

Amy eyed the three men warily from her position in her brother’s living room. It took barely a few seconds for her to decide that she really did not like the way they were looking at her.

“What?” she asked, eyes narrowed.

The three of them exchanged glances, then Bayden held up a hand. “Hold that thought, Amy.”

To Amy’s stunned disbelief, the three of them went into a huddle, whispering and arguing together. It lasted about five minutes, during which Amy twiddled her thumbs and scowled.

She was just about to whine her brother’s name, when Bayden pulled away.

“Hey, Ames,” he began. The little girl frowned. Bayden only ever called her Ames when he wanted her to do something he knew she wouldn’t like.

“Whatever it is – no,” she said. “I have a Math test tomorrow, and no time to do whatever it is you want me to do.”

It became her brother’s turn to frown. “You haven’t even heard me out!” he complained. “And anyway,” he reminded her, “You owe me. For that time with the guy in the place. Remember?”

Speed and Delko both raised identical eyebrows, but Amy apparently knew all too well what Bayden was talking about. Scowling at her brother, she snapped, “Fine. If I fail the test tomorrow, you can explain it to mom.”

“I’ll do that,” Bayden agreed quickly, though Amy knew he had no intention of doing so. If she agreed to help him, she was on her own.

It was really unbelievable, the things she would do for her brother.

“What do you need me to do?” she asked, defeated.

Her brother grinned. But just as he was about to explain, all three of their beepers went off, and his grin dissolved into a puzzled frown.

“It’s Calleigh,” said Speed, just as confused.

“I’ll call her,” said Eric, taking his phone out and hitting speed dial. The others waited patiently as he listened, then said, “Cal? Yeah, what’s up?” He listened some more, then his eyes widened into an expression of alarm. “Is he okay? No, I understand…yes, we’ll come in right away. Mt Sinai hospital, you say? We’ll be right there.” He hung up and turned to Speed and Bayden, shock in his eyes and face.

“It’s Horatio. He was shot by a suspect at a crime scene and he’s in the hospital now. Calleigh’s with him, and the doctors don’t think he’s going to make it.”

* * *

Eric Delko broke around three different traffic laws that day getting him and his colleagues to Mt Sinai hospital, escaping being issued any speeding tickets or traffic summonses through sheer luck and skill – and the fact that thanks to Horatio’s fame in the MDPD, every person even remotely connected with police work knew that the lieutenant was in the hospital.

Horatio had just come out of the ER when they arrived, and was resting in his room. Calleigh had collapsed on a bench, and Alexx was comforting her gently. She nodded to the three men as they approached, all looking apprehensive and worried. H was the heart and soul of their team, and without him…

It was depressing to even think about thinking about it.

“How is he?” asked Speed, the first to recover his voice.

Alexx looked up at him, her smile as gentle as always. “He’s resting now, sugar, but Doctor Roget says he should be just fine. We’ll know more once he wakes up.”

“So, he will wake up?” Bayden looked hopeful.

“Of course he’ll wake up!” Calleigh snapped, before she instantly looked horrified. Had she really spoken to Bayden that way? Gentle, well-meaning Bayden?

“All right,” Alexx cut in firmly, “We’ve all had a great shock, and tempers are short right now…Calleigh, you need to go home and rest, honey, and you three – you need to get back to work. That scene Horatio and Calleigh were processing – someone needs to finish working it.”

“We’ll do it,” Delko volunteered, nodding at Speed, who nodded too. Both were ready to go out and catch the guy who had shot their supervisor.

“Someone needs to stay with H,” Bayden said, firmly, a stubborn gleam in his eyes. “I’ll do it.”

“I want to -” Calleigh started to protest, but was cut off by Alexx again.

“That’s an excellent idea, Bay,” she told the young artist. “You stay with Horatio, and Calleigh or one of us will relieve you tonight.” Looking pointedly at Calleigh, she added, “ _After_ we get some rest at home.”

Few people could win an argument with Alexx in mother-mode, and the young woman gave in with a sigh. Anyway, even though her heart, her soul, her very _being_ longed to stay with Horatio, the more rational side of her mind told her that the coroner was right. Her body was screaming for rest, and her mind…was tired and needed sleep desperately.

She allowed Alexx to drive her home, but not before making Bayden swear to call her if – _when_ – Horatio woke up.

“And I don’t mean an hour or two after he wakes up, I mean immediately after he wakes up,” she told him, a warning glint in her eye. “I can get here in ten minutes.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Bayden had agreed amiably. “The very second he opens his eyes and says, ‘I’m awake!’, I’ll call you.”

The artist, meanwhile, had settled down to start his vigil at his supervisor’s bedside. His hand itched to grip a pencil and sketch, but he resisted the impulse, reminding himself that he wasn’t addicted to sketching, and anyway, what was he going to sketch around here? The window? The view outside the window? The table with H’s medications and a glass and pitcher of water? The..bed?

Bayden gulped. He had actually been trying to _avoid_ looking at the bed – or to be precise, its occupant. Horatio Caine.

At that moment, Horatio looked so fragile and pale against the white bed. His red hair was a stark contrast on the white pillow and the white hospital dress also clashed unfavorably in Bayden’s artist eyes. His entire chest was covered in bandages, and there were tubes stuck here and there in strategic spots on his body. Bayden was no medical student, but he wondered if all the tubes were really necessary. He was willing to bet they were uncomfortable and probably a real pain in the, er, side.

His boss looked… the young man cocked his head to the side, considering. For a man who had been shot, he was sleeping very peacefully; there was even a slight smile on his face. Definitely a far cry from the energetic supervisor who never seemed to tire.

Thinking back, Bayden realized he had never seen Horatio asleep. He had seen Calleigh, Speed, Delko, even Alexx crashing in the lab before, when cases and work piled up and just became to much to bear – but never Horatio. He had even wondered, along with Delko and Speed, if the lieutenant even slept at all – maybe he just plugged himself to a socket for a couple hours and hey, presto: Good to go?

Now, that was stupid. And completely inappropriate thinking for this moment in time. Bayden shook his head to clear his mind a little, then gave in to the instinctive need to sketch and withdrew his pencil and sketchbook. Bending over slightly, he started to draw.

Two hours later, it was how Speedle found him when he came to tell Bayden that they had arrested the man who had shot their boss.

“What are you doing now, Hawkeye?” he asked, keeping his voice down so he wouldn’t wake Horatio.

Bayden jerked towards his coworker in surprise, before smiling and holding up his latest creation – a sketch of Horatio. Speed studied the intricate sketchwork, the way Horatio was made to look so fragilely delicate, and yet … strong at the same time. Bayden had managed to capture strength in the lieutenant’s weakest moment, and Speed felt – as he always did when looking at one of Bayden’s sketches – a moment of awe and wonder for the enigma that was Bayden Michaels.

Then the feeling passed, and Speed handed back the sketch, saying gruffly, “Nice.”

Bayden beamed as though Speed had said the sketch belonged in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. He started to put it away in his backpack, before asking, “Are you here to replace me?”

Speed nodded, delivering his news about the suspect. “His name is Michael Corner. A real piece of scat that I won’t be sorry to see the last of. He’s gonna be in jail for a very long time.”

“For what he did to H…good,” said the young man, hauling his pack up onto his shoulder. “Okay, I’ll head in to work then – when H wakes up -“

“Call Calleigh,” Speed finished for him, a slight grin starting on his face. Bayden grinned back.

“Oh, yeah, almost forgot to deliver the gossip,” Speed said as Bayden was almost out the door. The artist turned at once.

“Gossip?”

“Yes…” Speed lowered his voice and leaned in. “It seems that Calleigh left out a bit of the story about what happened when H was shot, but when the suspect was giving his statement, I found out – Bay, guess what? It seems that Corner actually meant to shoot Calleigh at first, because she was nearest, but H pushed Calleigh out of the way and took the bullet for her! Corner even put in his statement that he heard Horatio say ‘I love you, Calleigh’, before he passed out.”

Bayden’s eyes became wide green saucers. “Whoa,” he gasped.

“Yup,” grinned Speed. “Exactly. And when he gets better…”

“You think this is a good topic to discuss right now?” Bayden shifted uncomfortably. Talking about fixing up their boss with Calleigh while said boss was unconscious in a hospital bed simply didn’t appeal to his ethics.

Apparently, Speed felt the same way once he thought about it. Glancing at H, he nodded. “I see your point… okay, you better go. I’ll stay here and keep an eye on our fearless leader.”

Bayden looked thoughtful, then nodded and exited the door. Speed, however, drew up a chair and made himself comfortable. He was going to be here for quite a while.

* * *

Horatio woke up at 9:33pm that night, and Eric, who was watching him, wasted no time in calling everyone – starting with Calleigh, of course. The ballistic expert was true to her word, arriving at the hospital at 9:43pm, looking anxious and apprehensive. Delko, who hadn’t been expecting her to be so…openly revealing her feelings, nevertheless made way for her to approach the bed and left the room to give them some privacy.

Horatio was sitting up, leaning against his pillows. He looked slightly tired, but definitely alive. Calleigh choked back a relieved sob. She hadn’t realized just how worried she had been, how desperately she had wanted Horatio to be okay.

She wasn’t even sure why…

Her mind flashed back to the last few minutes at the scene. Hearing the click as someone cocked a gun and aimed it at her head, seeing the way everything seemed to go into slow-motion the way near-death experiences sometimes did…hearing her own strangled scream of fright as Horatio ran forward, pushing her out of the way – then the sound of a gunshot, the acrid scent of gunpowder exploding in her senses…and finally kneeling over Horatio as he lay bleeding and gasping on the floor…

“Calleigh? Are you all right?” Horatio’s voice cut into her memories, and she looked up to see an unexpectedly gentle smile on his face.

“I -” To her horror, huge tears welled up in her eyes. Calleigh was mortified. She had never cried in front of her boss before… “I thought you were dead,” she whispered, unable to stop the tears from falling. “Oh, H, I thought you were dead!”

“Hey – come here.” Horatio’s voice stayed gentle, and she blindly made her way to his side, clutching hold of him in a desperate hug. Horatio held her, gently stroking her hair and back. Finally, as her sobs slowed down, he turned her to face him, handing her a tissue for her eyes and nose, and said, “You know what? I thought I was dead too.”

The laughter was sudden and unexpected, and Calleigh managed a small smile and a hiccough. “Well,” she said, “I’m glad you’re not dead. See, we need to have an a little talk.”

Horatio looked as though he had a pretty good idea what she wanted to talk about. He smiled. “You want to know if I meant what I said, before I passed out back at the scene?”

Calleigh nodded, her blue eyes serious. “That would be nice, yes.”

Her supervisor chuckled, then winced as his wound protested. Composing himself, he looked deep into Calleigh’s eyes, and said, “I meant it.”

Time seemed to stop as Calleigh processed what Horatio had just told her. Then, slowly, slowly, they leaned towards each other…

And broke apart again as the door opened to reveal a grinning Speed, with Delko and Bayden peering in from over Speed’s shoulders.

“Boys? May we help you?” asked Horatio, not releasing his hold on Calleigh.

“Yes…if you two are finally going to get it on and listen to that person who’s been sending you little hints – let us provide some appropriate mood music, eh?”

Speed moved towards the radio that sat innocently on the bedside table, and slid a CD into the player. With a grin, he hit play, then backed out of the room and shut the door behind him and his friends.  
  
The intro of Kelly Clarkson's [A Moment Like This](https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/kellyclarkson/amomentlikethis.html) echoed through the room.

As the last strains of Kelly Clarkson’s voice floated away on the night breeze that flowed into the room, Calleigh and Horatio turned to each other, smiled…and leaned in to join not just their lips together, but also their hearts and souls.

Outside, the stars began to move.

* * *

 


	8. And They Lived Happily Ever After

“Gentlemen, remind me again why I let you two talk me into making the biggest mistake of our lives,” Speed asked melodramatically as he staggered into the break room at the end of shift. It had been several weeks since Horatio had been shot, and the red-haired supervisor had long been back at work with nothing more than a sore chest and a cheerful disposition.

Calleigh and Horatio were now the hottest couple traveling the Miami Dade PD’s gossip-vines, ever since they had officially starting dating not more than 24 hours after Horatio had discharged himself from the hospital. Since both were well-liked by most of the MDPD, their sudden and undeniable love brought great joy to all, though there were those who clearly did not approve or agree with their relationship.

Yelina, for instance, retaliated by announcing her engagement to Rick Stetler (before he had actually proposed) and John Hagen was brought in under a DUI charge one morning. The little blond receptionist who had always smiled at Horatio, Tina, resigned quietly one day, and Bayden informed Speed and Delko that she had been infatuated with Horatio, and was probably unable to take this new development.

On the other hand, Horatio’s teammates were very happy. Their plan had more or less worked, and Calleigh and Horatio were together and very happy to be so. Both had changed since that day at the hospital – they were constantly in a good mood, both gave each other little smiles when they passed each other in the halls, and Calleigh was constantly getting little gifts and bouquets of flowers – whether they were her favorite or otherwise. And somehow, they managed to retain their professional expertise in solving crimes and had lost none of their edge – giving upper management no reason to complain. Horatio had also recently proposed, following a certain case which hit home the fact that life was short, and should not be wasted.

However, the constant “sappy and love-sick behavior”, as Speed called it, was making the Trace expert slightly edgy.

Bayden glanced up at Speed from his latest sketch of Alexx in the morgue, but was used to Speed’s little outbursts by now. “What happened this time?” he asked, a knowing tone to his voice.

“I went to the Trace lab, thinking I’d get some work done on the latest Jamieson case,” Speed explained, gesturing with his hand for emphasis. “And lo and behold – I walk in, and H and Calleigh are already there! And what are they doing?”

“Making out?” suggested Bayden.

“Murmuring sweet nothings to each other?” Delko guessed.

“No!” exclaimed Speed. “Worse! They weren’t doing anything!”

Bayden and Delko exchanged “huh?” looks. Frustrated, Speed explained, “They were both _working_. Calleigh was sitting at the computer going over some evidence, and H was standing behind her, just watching – he wasn’t even touching her!”

This time, Bayden and Eric exchanged amused glances. Bayden spoke first, “Uh, Speed – it’s called companionship. They’re both so comfortable in each other’s presence that they didn’t have to actually be physically connected, or talking. It’s a good thing – proves that they really are in love, that it isn’t just physical attraction.”

“Yeah, man… chill. Hey,” Eric tried to change the subject, “Have you got your suit for the wedding?”

“Yeah, gonna rent one – you?” asked Speed, scratching the back of his head with a tired sigh.

“Gonna borrow one from Bayden’s dad,” answered the Cuban. “And Bay has one of his own.” He squinted warily at Speed. “How about your speech?”

“What speech?”

“Your best-man’s speech – come on, man, don’t tell me you have _nothing_ good to say about H and Calleigh!”

“Speed, as the best man, you do know that you have to offer a toast at the reception, don’t you?” Bayden asked, eyes wide. “The rehearsal’s in a week’s time…and this speech has gotta be good.”

“A week?” Speed sounded supremely unconcerned. “That’s still a lot of time. Don’t worry, I’ll have it ready by then, no sweat.”

Eric and Bayden exchanged long-suffering, unconvinced looks, sighed simultaneously, and returned to what they had been doing.

* * *

A week later found Eric and Bayden more excited than ever about Horatio and Calleigh’s upcoming wedding, Horatio and Calleigh both in extremely good moods – albeit a little natural nervousness – and Speed slightly tense. The Trace expert had yet to write his little speech, and he hadn’t much idea what to say. At the rehearsal, he had managed to buy himself some time by saying he wanted to wait till the actual reception to give his speech, and the bride and groom had agreed, both knowing Speed as well as Delko and Bayden did – having procrastinated this far, the man would work best under pressure.

The day itself finally dawned, bright and sunny and filled with promise. The little church where the ceremony would take place was decorated beautifully, so that it was pretty without being nauseating. Eric and Bayden arrived early to help Alexx with some preparations.

It seemed that it took forever for the guests to arrive; friends and colleagues from the MDPD, Calleigh’s parents and brothers, and Yelina, Rick, and Ray Jr. Some were relatives of either the bride or groom, who neither H nor Calleigh had seen in years but had to invite for politeness’ sake. The little chapel was filled to overflowing, and soon the pastor had arrived and moved to wait in his position at the end of the aisle. Horatio stood there next to him, looking calm, though he was clearly sweating. Next to him, Eric discreetly reached up with a Kleenex and wiped his boss’ forehead for him – for until Calleigh arrived, it seemed as though H could do nothing for himself.

Bayden was the day’s official photographer, though from the frustrated stares he was casting around him while his fingers twitched, it was clear that he would have preferred to be allowed to sketch every minute detail of this precious day.

But finally, the moment came. Wedding music began to play, and the entire church rose, all eagerly anticipating the arrival of the bride. First, Jamie Woods and Madison Caine came skipping lightly down the aisle; each girl dressed in soft pink dresses with enough laces and frills to keep Barbie happy for about a decade. Bryan Woods was next, a handsome ring-bearer carrying a pillow with a ring on it, while behind him, Ray Jr. followed, slightly nervous as he held the pillow with the other ring on it. At rehearsal the day before, he had accidentally dropped the pillow and almost lost the ring as it rolled into a crack on the floor, and now he had almost a death-grip on the small, heart-shaped cushion and was determined to do his part to make this day perfect for his Uncle Horatio and Calleigh, who would soon be his aunt.

Behind Ray, Alexx approached, dressed in a sweet white dress that made her look lovely, and she had a smile on her face. The coroner had been honored when Calleigh had requested her to be her bridesmaid, and had at first been disinclined to acquiesce to the request. But after Calleigh convinced her, reminding her that Alexx was one of her closest friends and that there was no one else that Calleigh wanted with her on her special day, she had finally agreed, though she had blushed a deep scarlet when she’d told the ballistics expert so.

And finally – a hush fell over the chapel as Calleigh stepped into the church, looking the definition of gorgeous in a flowing white gown, with a soft white veil over her face, and the rest trailing behind her, covering her blonde locks from view. More than half the men in the audience openly gaped, each wishing that he were in Horatio’s place that day, while Horatio himself could barely take his eyes off her. Calleigh’s father moved up to her, taking her arm, and proceeded to lead her down the aisle, pride written all over his face.

“Congratulations, lambchop,” he whispered to her as they walked, following the beat of the music, and Calleigh beamed.

“Thanks, Daddy!”

They reached the altar, where Mr. Duquesne nodded to Horatio, and carefully handed over his daughter’s arm. Tim stood nearby, looking slightly uncomfortable in his hot tux, but still managing to grin at Eric and Bayden, seated nearby, who met his grin with grins of their own, Bayden even managing a thumbs-up.

They had tried to guide fate, tried to push together a pair who had been fated, destined to be together from the start. Together, they had all learned, that fate didn’t need anybody to help it along – for it already knew what was best for all the people involved. Today, the fated pair stood ready to be joined together in holy matrimony before God and man, and they hadn’t really needed sketches, or songs, or pranks…ah, such was the way fate worked.

Bayden Michaels pulled his camera out, and started taking pictures, a sketch forming in his mind even as he did so. And in his head, a caption formed: “Horatio and Calleigh, November 2005. Meant To Be.”

And then, the pastor stepped forward, the music ended, and the ceremony began.

* * *

_(A year later)_

As she ran a wet cloth over a dusty trunk, a pile of books nearby crashed to the attic floor, and dust flew everywhere, making her sneeze. Calleigh Caine shook her head, used her handkerchief to wipe her nose, and sniffed as she moved to pick up the books, which were actually some old photo albums from the previous year. A smile spread across her face as she studied the pictures from her life; so much had happened since the last year, that she could barely take it all in even now.

The first album began with a few shots from several New Year’s parties at various colleagues’ homes, starting with one Tim had thrown, to a small dinner Horatio had held back when he was still living in his old apartment. Then it moved on, to a few birthday parties for Alexx’s children, a school play in which Ray Jr. had been the lead, and some pictures of their little family at a few departmental parties and get-togethers.

Finally… Calleigh’s smile grew wider as she arrived at a large page where there were no photos, but instead a single, photocopied, rather folded sketch of herself and Horatio, working side by side in the lab, and some song lyrics printed neatly down one side of the page. At the bottom, in Comic Sans MS font, the words read, “Admitting your feelings is the first step, Cal.”

She sighed as she gently took the photocopied sketch out, wistfully remembering the way Bayden had used to draw and sketch at every chance he’d had, capturing even the smallest detail of any scene on paper in a way that few people could. Unfortunately, the young artist couldn’t do that anymore – there had been an accident the year before, when Bayden had visited a factory crime scene, and his right hand – his sketching hand – had been caught in a machine, and the doctors had been unable to save it. It had had to be amputated. Bayden had at first been devastated, and perhaps he still was, but the young CSI had bounced right back up, and was as cheerful and friendly as ever with the same mischievous spirit and love of life that made him Bayden. He still noticed every single detail a crime scene had to offer, still thought of the world as a place made up of a billion sketches that was just begging to be drawn. H had fought hard to keep the young man on his team, as a lab technician if not as a CSI. The young man worked Trace now, though sometimes he followed Horatio and the others out to a scene just for the heck of it – just because he was still a good CSI, even though he only had one hand and another prosthetic limb.

Calleigh turned the pages of the album, following every sketch that Bayden, Speed and Delko had sent to her and Horatio, and then flipping reverently through Bayden’s photos of their wedding. Finally, she stopped at the very last page of the album. Here, a single tear escaped her eye, but only one – for fear that her tears would mess up the intricate pencil marks and ruin Bayden’s final masterpiece – the last sketch he had drawn before he’d lost his right hand.

There, in life-like realism on the paper, stood Horatio, with his arm around her, grinning. They were on the front lawn of the church immediately after their wedding, and both of them had their “newly-married glow” surrounding them still, which the sketch had captured, far better than the best photograph. Next to them, on either side, stood Eric and Tim, both men had already undone their ties and removed their tuxedo jackets. Alexx stood next to Tim, and she was smiling too, wearing her lovely white dress from the wedding. And finally, on the ground, leaning back against Eric’s legs, was Bayden, grinning his mischievous grin up at the camera, both hands still intact as he leaned back on his palms, long legs stretched out full-length on the grass.

All of them, together – their little family. Calleigh sniffed slightly, then read the little note that had been pinned to the bottom:

_“The tide recedes but leaves behind bright seashells on the sand,  
_ _The sun goes down but gentle warmth still lingers on the land,  
_ _The music fades and yet it echoes on its refrains,  
_ _For every joy that passes, something beautiful remains._

_Horatio, Calleigh,_

_I don’t have much to offer you two on this special day but my undying love and friendship. I love you two like family, and neither of you could begin to imagine exactly how much you both – and the rest of our little “family” – mean to me. Thanks for everything, guys, and please accept this little sketch as my humble way of saying “thank you”. I love you guys, and wish you two all the best in the wonderful life that lies ahead of you._

_Love, Bayden Alexander Michaels.”_

Another tear escaped, and Calleigh hurriedly but carefully stored the sketch in its place once again, putting away the albums and deciding to finish cleaning up the attic another day.

From downstairs, the front door opened and closed, and she knew that her husband had returned home from work. Wiping away her tears, she took a deep breath to calm herself down, then smiled and headed downstairs to greet him.

“Hey,” she began at the top of the stairs, stopped, for Horatio wasn’t there. Puzzled, she scanned the room, wincing a little at a spot where their yellow Labrador puppy, Summer, had left a little mess, then she went the rest of the way downstairs. A little sound reached her, and she smiled, realizing at once where her husband had gone. Still smiling, she made her way down the hallway, then turned left into a little room and opened the door, peering in quietly.

Horatio turned around at once. “Hey, Calleigh,” he greeted, a soft smile on his face.

“Hey, guys,” she greeted, moving to give Horatio a quick kiss, before they both turned to gaze lovingly down on the reason Calleigh was currently at home on maternity leave.

Emily Elizabeth Caine kicked a tiny foot into the air and gurgled happily up at both her parents, chuckling and smiling up at them. Overcome with love for her little daughter, Calleigh reached down, scooping her up carefully and holding her little girl close.

“So, Daddy comes home and you don’t even call up to let me know?” she mock-scolded, tickling Emily in her sensitive belly. Emily gurgled again, and her smile grew bigger as Horatio gently took her from her mother’s arms, careful to support the tiny head.

“She has your eyes,” he noted proudly for what had to be the hundredth time. Calleigh simply smiled.

“Well, I wonder who she got her hair from?” she said, teasing softly, for it was obvious which parent Emily had inherited the orange-blond fluff on her head from.

“She’s going to be a month old soon,” Horatio said, giving Calleigh an amazed smile. “We’ll have to throw a full-moon party.”

“Sounds good to me,” Calleigh yawned, taking up a spot on the bed next to Emily’s cot to lie down on. Horatio joined her, settling Emily down carefully on Calleigh’s stomach, where the little girl instantly snuggled closer and proceeded to fall asleep.

The little family rested in a comfortable silence for a while, until finally, Horatio murmured softly, “And to think…this all came to be because Bayden once captured our love on canvas…”

Calleigh grinned, but she corrected him, “No, Horatio. This all began when I fell in love with my handsome, charming, kind and loving boss…”

“Yeah?” Horatio smiled at her. “Your boss is one lucky guy, huh?”

“I’d say so.” Calleigh smirked, before it was replaced by a loving smile. “I love you, Horatio Caine.”

Horatio moved up, leaning over her. “And I love you, too, Calleigh,” he murmured, before bending down to seal his promise with a kiss.

* * *

The End


End file.
